Song of the Sea (2014)

An animated fantasy film, Song of the Sea (2014), was directed and co-produced by Tomm Moore. It tells the story of Conor, a lighthouse keeper on an island off the coast of Ireland. He lives with his son Ben, pregnant wife Bronagh, and their Old English Sheepdog Cú. One night, Bronagh mysteriously disappears after giving birth to their daughter Saoirse. Six years later, Conor is heartbroken, Saoirse doesn’t speak, and Ben resents her for his mother’s disappearance. On Saoirse’s birthday, their grandmother visits and criticizes their home as an unsuitable place to raise children. That night, Ben frightens Saoirse with a tale of Mac Lir and the Owl Witch who stole his emotions and turned him to stone. Later on, Saoirse discovers a seashell horn which leads her to a white sealskin coat hidden in Conor’s closet. She puts it on and ventures out to the sea where she reveals herself to be a selkie to a group of seals.

After swimming, Granny finds her on the seashore and insists on taking the children to her home on the Mainland. Conor agrees reluctantly, locking the coat in a chest and tossing it into the sea. On Halloween, Saoirse uses Ben’s seashell to call the Faeries known as ‘Na Daoine Sídhe’. While attempting to return home, they are stopped by the Faeries who are hoping Saoirse will help them return to Tír na nÓg. Unfortunately, Macha’s owls attack and turn the Faeries to stone. The siblings flee and catch a country bus, where they encounter Cú who had followed them. However, Saoirse’s health is deteriorating without her seal coat and being away from the ocean. Fortunately, they come across a holy well where Saoirse dives in. Ben also dives in and meets the Great Seanachaí who reveals that Saoirse was kidnapped by Macha and is unable to speak because she needs her coat back or she will soon die.